Selector device



June 2, 1959 w. A. PATZER 2,888,835

' SELECTOR DEVICE Filed June 25, 1956 5&2

i M l1 IN V EN TOR.

flfiarneys United States Patent Patented June 2, 1959 SELECTOR DEVICEWilliam A. Patzer, Chicago, Ill., assignor to L. W. Menzimer, trustee,Rockford, Ill.

Application June 25, 1956, Serial No. 593,426

14 Claims. (Cl. 74-483) This invention relates to a machine for vendingvarious articles of merchandise, such as candy, cigarettes, beverages,canned goods, milk and the like, wherein various brands or articles areavailable for selection. It relates more particularly to a device foruse in a machine of the type described which enables selection to bemade by the vendee independently of any previous operation of themachine or any previous selection but without permitting operation ofthe machine for delivery of more than the one article selected.

This application is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No.574,200, filed March 27, 1956, and entitled Selector Device.

It is an object of this invention to provide a device of the typedescribed which may be used as a selector operable by the vendee for theselection of articles desired to be delivered by the vending machine.

Another object is to provide a device of the type described whichenables selection to be made without limitation by reason of anyprevious selection prior to the operation of the machine through itsvending cycle and independently and without influence by the arrangementof parts from any previous operation of the machine thereby to permitcomplete freedom and flexibility in the selection of articles to bedelivered from the machine.

A further object of this invention is to provide a device of the typedescribed which prevents simultaneous operation to vend other than theone selected article from the machine and which permits operation forsubsequent selection for delivery without the necessity to return all ofthe elements to a normal position of adjustment thereby to make themachine completely independent of its previous operations.

A still further object is to provide a selector device of the typedescribed which is formed of relatively few simple parts that are easilyassembled into a unit capable of prefabrication, which requires verylittle, if any, maintenance or repair, and which makes use of elementsthat remain free to move in all positions of adjustment thereby topermit operation independently of position.

These and other objects and advantages of this invention willhereinafter appear and for purposes of illustration, but not oflimitation, embodiments of the invention are shown in the accompanyingdrawing, in which Figure 1 is a fragmentary top plan view of a portionof the selector device embodying the features of this invention;

Figure 2 is a view similar to that of Figure 1 showing the arrangementof parts when one of the plungers is displaced for selection;

Figure 3 is similar to that of Figures 1 and 2 showing the arrangementof parts when another one of the plungers is displaced for selection;

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken along the line 4-4 of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a sectional view taken along the line 5-5 of Figure 4;

Figure 6 is a sectional view taken along the line 6-6 of Figure 4;

Figure 7 is a sectional view taken along the line 77 of Figure 4;

Figure 8 is a perspective view of a portion of the device shown inFigure 1 but illustrating a modification in the construction of theplunger; and

Figure 9 is a perspective view of one of the disc members employed inthe device described.

To the present, various means have been employed for selection of anarticle to be vended from a machine. In the main, these have constitutedrather large and cumbersome units constructed of a plurality of leversor other elements interconnected for rocking movement about separatepivots with the ends of the levers in operative engagement one with theother for rocking movement or displacement of all of the elements to oneside of the lever associated with the selector rod operated thereby toeffect operation of the machine through a cycle. Before operation of asubsequent cycle, the elements described are generally returned to theirnormal position for setting the machine to enable a subsequent selectionto be made which would otherwise be prevented.

Further, in a device of the type heretofore employed, the operation ofall of the elements interconnected or in contacting relation one withthe other complicates the machine and the construction thereof to theextent that interferences arise in operation and shut-downs for repairor replacement of parts occur quite frequently.

The inflexibilities experienced in the operation of selector devicesheretofore employed and the large space required for the assembly of theselector device in a vending machine have been obviated, in accordancewith the practice of this invention, by the use of a device ofconsiderably smaller dimension and simpler construction wherein freedomof operation is secured and wherein greater flexibility in operation ismade available.

As illustrated schematically in the drawing, independently of thevending machine adapted to be operated thereby, the selector deviceembodying the features of this invention comprises a plurality of discmembers, such as the three disc members 10, 12 and 14 illustrated in thedrawing, formed of rigid material, such as plastics, metals and thelike, and preferably formed of a material which is resistant tocorrosion and which is somewhat self-lubricating in character so as tobe free for operation as a bearing or slide, as will hereinafter bedefined.

The disc members, preferably of uniform dimension, are arranged in sideby side relation within a guide slot 16 formed Within a plate 18, as inthe top wall of an H casting, such as illustrated in the drawing. Theguide slot 16 is dimensioned to have a width corresponding to thediameter of the disc members and a depth corresponding to the thicknessof the disc members to permit the disc members to be received thereinfor free sliding or rolling movement laterally without too much play inthe endwise direction and without enabling the disc members to straddleone another when the slot is enclosed by a cover plate 20 whichpreferably extends continuously over the slot and is fixed or otherwisesecured to the top side or the plate.

The disc members 10, 12 and 14 are arranged within the slot betweenstops in the form of studs 22 and 24 extending upwardly through anintermediate portion of the slot and spaced laterally one from the otherby a distance corresponding to the combined diameters of the discmembers plus the thickness of a plunger 26 or slide adapted to beprojected therebetween in operation. Instead of studs or pins 22 and 24,use may be made of other abutments or stops having the described spacedrelation therebetween. For example, use may be made of walls whichdefine the ends of the slots or the like or use may be made ofprojections extending inwardly from the side walls of the H casting intoposition to be engaged by the lateral edge portions of the outermostdisc members for limiting the extent of sidewise movement. It ispreferred to make use of pins or studs which can be secured in positionof use within the slot so as to enable the casting or plate to be formedin endless strips for cutting to lengths corresponding to the number ofslide and disc members to be used therewith.

The plungers 26 or slides comprise elongate metal members preferablyformed to be rectangular in cross section and mounted for endwisesliding movement in slots 28 and 30 extending lengthwise through theupper portions of the front and back walls 32 and 34- respectivelyforming a part of the plate or H casting to provide guides for theplungers in endwise movement. Each of the pairs of slots 28 and 30 forreceiving a plunger or slide is spaced crosswise in the casting by anamount corresponding to the diameters of the disc members located withinthe guide slot 16 so as to align the plungers with the lateral edgeportions of the disc members for camming action in operation to effectdisplacement as will hereinafter be described. As a result, the numberof plungers or slides 26 employed can correspond to one more than thenumber of disc members 10, 12 or 14, as illustrated by the four slides26, 26 26 and 26 in the drawing, with the outermost slides 26 and 26aligned with the lateral edge portions of the outermost disc members and14, while the intermediate plungers are aligned with the lateral edgeportions of the middle disc member 12 and the disc members adjacentthereto. Any number of plungers less than one more than the number ofdisc members may be used with the plungers aligned with one or the otherof the lateral edge portions of the disc members for effecting thedesired displacement by camming action, in position of use.

Each plunger is dimensioned to have a length substantially greater thanthe width of the plate or casting with a forward end portion 36extending through the opening beyond the front wall 32 of the castingfor a substantial distance, when in normal position, and a lesserdistance when in operated position. The portion extending forwardlybeyond the front wall may be provided with a knob or other means forenhancing a gripping relation to be established for manual operation ofthe plunger between normal and operated positions of adjustment.

The plunger is dimensioned to provide a rearward end portion 38 whichextends through the slot 30 in the rear wall of the casting to extend agreater or lesser distance from the rear wall in the operated and normalpositions of adjustment respectively. In the illustrated modification,the plunger is cut away in the rearward upper edge portion to provide anupwardly inclined section 40 which operates as a cam to effectdisplacement of a switch arm 42 to make or break a switch 44 responsiveto movement of the plunger between normal and operated positions. Forthis purpose, switch members 44 are mounted on the top wall 26 with aswitch arm extending downwardly through a rearward opening 46 inalignment with the plunger for enabling the switch arm 42 to extenddownwardly through the opening into resilient engagement with the upperedge of the plunger. Thus when the plunger is in normal position, asillustrated in Figure 5, the roller 48 on the end of the switch armextending downwardly through the opening 46 rests upon the upper edgeportion of the plunger rearwardly of the cam whereby the switch arm isin its lowered or un-made position. During movement of the plunger fromnormal to operated position, as illustrated in Figure 7 of the drawing,the rearward displacement of the plunger brings the cam surface intooperative engagement with the roller 43 on the end of the switch arm 44to cause the latter to be rocked upwardly about its pivot and to makethe switch 44 which is aligned to be operated by the switch arm. Whenthe plunger is returned to normal position, the roller rides down thecam to rock the switch arm in the clockwise direction about its pivot tobreak the switch. It will be understood that other means responsive todisplacement of the plunger during movement from normal to operatedpositions and from operated to normal positions may be employed to makeand break the switch respectively.

The intermediate portion of the plunger, usually located within theguide slot 16, is formed with a recess 50 in the upper edge portion.This recess is formed to have a depth to bring the bottom of the recesssubstantially flush with the surface of the slotted plate so as toprovide a relatively continuous surface crosswise over which the discmembers can slide. The length of the recess 50 is preferably dimensionedto be less than the width of the slot 16 but greater than the cordthrough the disc members spaced at distance from the edges thereof by anamount corresponding to the width of the plunger so that this portion ofthe disc members may be displaced into the recess during operation.However, the recess may be of a greater length as long as the forwardedge is free of the disc members in normal position and alongside thedisc members when the plunger is displaced to operated position. When innormal position, the recess 50 is dimensioned to be centered lengthwisewithin the guide slot and the amount of displacement of the plunger fromnormal to operated position is adapted to bring the plunger defining theforward edge portion of the slot into camming engagement with thecurvilinear lateral edge portions of the disc members for displacementtherebetween. Thus the stroke of the plungers between normal andoperated positions is intended to correspond to an amount sufiicieut tobring a portion of the plunger at the level of the disc plates to atleast the center of the guide slot thereby to space the adjacent discmembers by an amount corresponding to the thickness of the plunger.

Various means may be employed for stopping the plunger and to determineits normal and operated positions of adjustment. One such means caninclude a stop in the form of pins 52 extending laterally from theforward end portion of the slide for abutment against the front wall ofthe casting when the plunger is displaced to operated position asillustrated by the position of plunger 26 in Figure 3. A similar stop orpin 54 extending laterally in the rearward end portion of the plungercan be employed for abutment against the rear wall of the casting whenthe plunger is displaced from operated to normal positions of adjustmentas illustrated in Figures 1, 2 and 3. Instead of making use of a pinlocated in the plunger to extend laterally in position to engage thefront wall of the casting, the knob (not shown) mounted on the forwardend portion of the plunger may be adapted to abut against the front wallof the casting when the plunger is displaced to its operated position ofadjustment.

In the preferred concept of this invention, as illustrated in Figure 8of the drawing, the plunger or slide 26 is dimensioned to have a portionextending rearwardly from the H casing to space the rearward end thereoffrom a wall 56 by an amount corresponding to the stroke of the plungerbetween normal and operated positions whereby the end of the plunger isstopped upon engagement with the wall 56. The rearward end portion ofthe plunger is formed with a downwardly extending offset 58 whichprovides a stop shoulder 60 in position to engage the rearward Wall ofthe casting when the plunger is returned from operated position tonormal position. It will be understood that various other means withinthe art may be adapted for use as stops to control movement of theplunger between normal and operated positions of adjustment.

Means are employed constantly to urge the plungers independently in thedirection toward their normal position automatically to return the slidefrom operated to normal position upon release. Various means can beemployed for such purpose such as the tension spring 70 having one end72 secured to a hook 74 depending from the rearward end portion of theplunger, as illustrated in Figures 5 and 7 of the drawing. The other endof the spring 70 can be anchored onto the rear wall 34 of the casting oronto the front wall 39, as illustrated in the drawing. Instead of atension spring of the type described, use can be made of other meanssuch as a compression spring 76 located between the wall 56 and the endof the plunger portion 38, as indicated in Figure 8.

By way of still further modification, as illustrated in Figure 8, it isdesirable to provide undercuts such as the crosswise extending grooves62 and 64 in the top wall of the casting over which the disc members 10,12 and 14 are slidable. Additional grooves in between may be providedwith a sufficient number of ribs upstanding to support the disc memberslevel within the guide slot for lateral displacement. These undercutsreduce the amount of surface in contacting relation with the discmembers thereby to minimize the frictional forces existing in operation.In addition, any dirt or other foreign material which finds its way intothe selector device can be displaced into the undercuts withoutinterfering with the operation of the device or the free movement of theparts thereby to minimize the necessity for replacement and repair orthe frequency of shut-downs for cleaning purposes.

With the undercuts and with the described dimensional relation betweenthe parts, it is possible to make use of the device while located in avertical or endwise position as well as in the illustrated horizontalposition since means are provided for the removal of foreign matter fromthe operating surfaces and the possibility of free movement of the discmembers both rotationally as well as linearly permits displacementfreely in any direction independently of position in the machine. Thusthe elements can be operated with a minimum amount of friction and wearand without interference and without limitation as to position to permitfull flexibility in use.

In operation, the elements may be arranged as illustrated in Figure 1 ofthe drawing with all of the plungers in their normal forward position ofadjustment and with the disc members arranged in side by side relationwithin the guide slot 16 between the stops 22 and 24 whereby sufiicientplay exists between the elements to permit a plunger to be projectedtherebetween but insuflicient to permit projection of more than oneplunger therebetween. Thus, in selection of an article to be vended,when the proper plunger, such as the plunger 26 is displaced manuallyfrom normal to operated position of adjustment, the edge portion 66 ofthe plunger which is located in advance of the disc members is displacedin the direction to engage the lateral curvilinear edge or edges of thedisc members in its path whereby the disc members are cammed in thesidewise direction by an amount to permit the plunger to be continued tobe displaced rearwardly to position a portion therebetween, asillustrated by the plunger 26 in Figure 3. The plunger is stopped in operated position of adjustment upon engagement of the stop pin 52 withthe front Wall 32 of the casting or upon abutment of the rearward endportion of the plunger 26 with the wall 56 of the machine.

As the plunger is displaced reaiwardly, the roller 48 riding on theupper edge of the rearward end portion of the plunger is caused to rideup on the cam edge 40- to rock the switch arm 42 in thecounter-clockwise direction about its pivot to make the correspondingswitch 44. The switch that is made determines the article to bedelivered when the machine is subsequently cycled for carrying out thevending operation. Until the vending cycle is carried out, the vendee isfree to change his mind by releasing the plunger for automatic return tonormal 6 position thereby to free the device for operation of adiflerent plunger to eifect a desired selection.

When in operated position, the displaced plunger takes up an amount ofspace between the disc members to prevent displacement of any otherplunger. This will be evident from the fact that the free spacedrelation between the stops 22 and 24 is adapted to be slightly greaterthan the thickness of the plunger but less than twice the thicknessthereof so that when one plunger is in operated position, the discmembers are incapable of being further cammed in the direction away fromeach other by an amount to enable another plunger to extend therebetweenwith the result that the disc members tend to block movement of suchother plungers from normal to operated positions of adjustment.

When the operated plunger is released, the spring operates automaticallyto return the plunger from displaced to normal position. The roller 48on the end of corresponding switch arm 42 rides down the cam surface 40as it is displaced thereunder for rocking movement of the switch arm tobreak the switch. As the plunger is returned toward normal position, theportion thereof disposed between the disc members is also withdrawn sothat the disc members once more have sufficient play in the sidewisedirection to enable the same plunger or any other plunger to be manuallydisplaced from normal to operated positions to make a subsequentselection. It will be apparent that the rolling contact between the discmembers with the side walls of the guide slot and with each otherpermits for free movement responsive to camming action by the plungersand that the alignment of the disc members, at all times, with acurvilinear lateral edge portion in the path of the plungers,notwithstanding the previous displacements thereof, enables thedescribed camming action to be effected for selection so that it becomespossible to efl'ect selection between operations of the machine withoutthe necessity for readjustment of the disc members or return of the discmembers to any particular starting position. This provides for completeflexibility in operation and selection without influence on previoussettings or operations.

While it is preferred to make use of plungers constructed in the mannerdescribed to place a portion thereof between the disc members, when inoperated position, it will be understood that other means may beemployed responsive to movement of the plunger from normal to operatedposition to effect the desired displacement and for maintaining thedesired spaced relation between the displaced disc members. For example,use may be made of a rocker arm operatively connected to each plunger ina manner to cause rocking movement of the arm into camming engagementwith edge portions of the disc members to effect displacement thereofresponsive to movement of the plunger from normal to operated positionsof adjustment thereby to take up an amount of space between the discmembers which blocks movement of other rocker arms for camming action toeffect corresponding displacement of the disc members which wouldotherwise enable the second plunger to be displaced into operatedposition. Under such circumstances, the amount of lateral movement ofthe disc members available between the stops will be calculated to begreater than the thickness of the element adapted to be displacedtherebetween but less than twice the thickness so that only one suchelement can be present at any one time and retraction thereof will benecessary responsive to withdrawal of the plunger before another can beoperated for selection. Under such circumstances, the plungers would beconstructed without having portions adapted to be projected between thedisc members.

It will be apparent from the foregoing description that I have provideda simple device of small dimension to control selections of articles tobe dispensed from a vending machine and that such unit may be mounted inany position and/ or in any location within the machine withoutinterference with the operation thereof. The free movement of the discmembers and theiralignment with the plungers to enable camming'actionfor displacement, notwithstanding any previous operation of theelements, provides for complete flexibility in selection and operation,yet complete control is availableto prevent delivery of other than theone article selected.

It will be understood that a selector device of the type described mayalso be used to advantage in the selection of one of a plurality ofoptional operations available in a machine or device or a railroadswitching system where it is essential to limit operation to but one ofthe plurality of optional operations at any one time.

It will be understood that changes may be made in the details ofconstruction, arrangement and operation without departing from thespirit of the invention, especially as defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1. A selector device of the type described comprising a plurality offlat disc members, a housing having a confined disc slot dimensioned tohave a length corresponding to the diameter of the disc members, athickness corresponding to the thickness of the disc members and aneffective width greater than the combined diameters of the disc membersplus the thickness of the plunger but less than twice the thicknessthereof, said disc members being positioned Within the disc slot in sideby side relation for relative movement in the crosswise directionbetween the effective width, a plurality of plungers mounted for endwisemovement in the housing in a direction lengthwise of the disc slot withrecesses of said plunger extending upwardly, said recesses dimensionedto have a length corresponding to the cord of the disc members spacedfrom the edge by an amount corresponding to the thickness of the plungerand located centrally in the disc slot when in operated position inlengthwise alignment with the lateral edge portions of the disc members,switch means for each plunger, an operative connection between eachplunger and the respective switch means for making the switch when theplunger is in operated position, and means constantly urging each ofsaid plungers independently in the direction to align the slottedportion with the crosswise diameters of the disc members.

2. A selector device of the type described comprising a plurality offlat disc members, a housing having a confined slot dimensioned to havea length corresponding to the diameter of the disc members, a thicknesscorresponding to the thickness of the disc members and an effectivewidth greater than the combined diameters of the disc members plus thethickness of a plunger but less than twice the thickness thereof, saiddisc members being positioned within the slot in side by side relationto permit relative movement in the crosswise directions between theeffective width of the slot, a plurality of plungers mounted for endwisemovement in the housing in a laterally spaced apart relationcorresponding to the diameter of the disc members, said plungers havingportions shiftable in a direction lengthwise through the slot duringmovement of the plunger between normal and operated positions ofadjustment, said portions of the plunger within the slot having recessesdimensioned to have a length corresponding to the cord of the discmembers spaced between each by an amount corresponding to the thicknessof the plunger and in which the recess is located centrally in the slotwhen in operated position, switch means for each plunger, an operativeconnection between each plunger and the respective switch means formaking the switch when the plunger is in operated position, and meansconstantly urging each of said plungers independently in the directiontowards normal position.

3. A selector device as claimed in claim 2 in which the recess portionof the plunger within the slot has a depth sufficient to bring thebottom edge thereof flush with the base of the slot over which the coinsmove.

.4. A selector device as claimed in claim) in which the base of the slotisformed with a plurality of crosswise extending recesses to minimizethe surface area in contact with the disc members during movement.

5. A selector device as claimed in claim 2 in which the plungers areformed with a cam in the upper edge portion outside of the slot and inwhich the operative connection between a switch and the plungercomprises switch arm means resiliently engaging the edge of the plungerfor engagement by the cam during movement between normal and operatedpositions.

6. A selector device as claimed in claim 2 which includes stop means forlimiting movement of the plungers between normal and operated position.

7. A selector device comprising a plurality of plungers, a plurality offiat disc members, a housing having a confined slot dimensioned to havea length corresponding to the diameters of the disc members, a thicknesscorresponding to the thickness of the disc members and an effectivewidth greater than the combined diameters of the disc members plus thethickness of the plunger adapted to be projected therebetween but lessthan twice the thickness thereof, said disc members being positionedwithin the slot in side-by-side relation, said plungers being formedwith an upstanding portion within the slot in advance of the discmembers and spaced forwardly from the center of the slot by an amountcorresponding to the length of stroke of the plungers during movementbetween normal and operated positions thereby to space the upstandingportion out of contact with the disc members when in normal position andalongside the disc members to occupy space therebetween when in operatedposition, means mounting the plungers in the housing in laterallyspaced-apart relation corresponding to the diameters of the disc memberswith the upstanding portion of the plungers aligned endwise with thelateral edge portions of the disc members for endwise movement intocamming engagement to position the upstanding portion of the plungeralongside the discs to occupy a s ace therebetween responsive tomovement of the plungers from normal to operated positions ofadjustment, stop means for each plunger in position to be engaged by theplunger when in operated position of adjustment, and means constantlyurging each of said plungers away from said stop means toward normalposition.

8. A selector device as claimed in claim 7 in which the slot is formedwith crosswise grooves in the wall portion over which the disc membersslide during displacement.

9. A selector device as claimed in claim 7 which includes switch membersfor each plunger and in which the means for each plunger in position tobe engaged by the plunger when in operated position of adjustment isoperatively connected to the switch member for making the switch when inoperated position.

10. A selector device as claimed in claim 8 in which the operativeconnection comprises a cam on the upper edge or" each plunger and aswitch arm riding upon the upper edge of the plunger.

11. A selector device of the type described comprising a plurality offiat disc members, a housing having a confined disc slot dimensioned tohave a length corresponding to the diameter of the disc member, athickness corresponding to the thickness of the disc members and aneffective width greater than the combined diameters of the disc membersplus the thickness of the plunger but less than twice the thicknessthereof, said disc members being positioned within the disc slot in sideby side relation for relative movement in the crosswise directionbetween the effective width, a plurality of plungers mounted for endwisemovement in the housing in a direction lengthwise of the disc slot withrecesses of said plungers extending upwardly, said recesses dimensionedto have a length corresponding to the cord of the disc members spacedfrom the edge by an amount corresponding to the thickness of the plungerand located centrally in the disc slot when in operated position inlengthwise alignment with the lateral edge portions of the disc members,switch means for each plunger, and an operative connection between eachplunger and the respective switch means for making the switch when theplunger is in operated position.

12. A selector device of the type described comprising a plurality offlat disc members, a housing having a confined slot dimensioned to havea length corresponding to the diameter of the disc members, a thicknesscorresponding to the thickness of the disc members and an effectivewidth greater than the combined diameters of the disc members plus thethickness of a plunger but less than twice the thickness thereof, saiddisc members being positioned within the slot in side-by-side relationto permit relative movement in the crosswise directions between theeffective width of the slot, a plurality of plungers mounted for endwisemovement in the housing in a laterally spaced apart relationcorresponding to the diameter of the disc members, said plungers havingportions shiftable in a direction lengthwise through the slot duringmovement of the plunger between normal and operated positions ofadjustment, said portions of the plungers within the slot havingrecesses dimensioned to have a length corresponding to the cord of thedisc members spaced between each by an amount corresponding to thethickness of the plunger and in which the recess is located centrally inthe slot when in operated position, switch means for each plunger, andan operative connection between each plunger and the respective switchmeans for making the switch when the plunger is in operated position.

13. A selector device comprising a plurality of the flat disc members, ahousing having a confined disc slot dimensioned to have a lengthcorresponding to the diameter of the disc members, a thicknesscorresponding to the thickness of the disc members and an eifectivewidth greater than the combined diameters of the disc members plus thethickness of the plunger but less than twice the thickness thereof, saidslot being formed with spaced-apart grooves extending crosswise in thebottom wall portion thereof over which the disc members slide duringdisplacement, said disc members being positioned within the disc slot inside-by-side relation for relative move: ment in the crosswise directionbetween the etfective width, a plurality of plungers mounted for endwisemovement in the housing in a direction lengthwise f the disc slot with arecess in the upper edge of the plunger dimensioned to have a lengthcorresponding to the cord of the disc members spaced from the edgethereof by an amount corresponding to the thickness of the plunger andlocated centrally in the disc slot when in operated position inlengthwise alignment with the lateral edge portions of the disc members,switch means for each plunger, and an operative connection between eachplunger and the respective switch means for making the switch when theplunger is displaced to operated position.

14. A selector device comprising a plurality of plungers, a plurality offlat disc members, a housing having a confined slot dimensioned to havea length corresponding to the diameter of the disc members, a thicknesscorresponding to the thickness of the disc members and an effectivewidth greater than the combined diameter of the disc members plus thethickness of a portion of the plunger adapted to be projectedtherebetween but less than twice the thickness thereof, said discmembers being positioned within the slot in side-by-side relation, meansmounting the plungers in the housing in laterally spaced-apart relationcorresponding to the diameters of the disc members and aligning saidplungers with the lateral edge portions of the disc members for endwisemovement into camming engagement to position a portion of the plungeralongside the discs to occupy a space corresponding to the differencebetween the combined diameters of the disc members and the effectivelength of the slot responsive to movement of the plungers from normal tooperated positions of adjustment, means for each plunger in position tobe engaged by the plunger when in operated position of adjustment,switch means for each plunger, a cani on the upper edge of each plunger,and a switch arm on the switch means which rides upon the upper edge ofthe plunger in advance of the cam for making the switch as the switcharm is displaced by the cam responsive to movement of the plunger fromnormal to operated position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS536,414 Bailey Mar. 26, 1895 1,746,040 Jenne Feb. 4, 1930 2,105,644Gebert et al. Jan. 19, 1938 2,307,285 Mastney Jan. 5, 1943 2,459,255 VonGlahn Jan. 18, 1949

